Assistance Given To Go To Services

September 8, 2009|By Lona O'Connor The Palm Beach Post

A small announcement brought surprising results for Rabbi Alan Sherman.

The item asked people to call Sherman if they would have difficulty paying the fee for High Holy Days services. Sherman, executive vice president of the Palm Beach County Board of Rabbis, would then discreetly match them up with a temple, for a reduced fee or none at all, if necessary.

In a normal year, Sherman might field one or two such calls. This year he got a dozen in the first three days after the announcement.

"The big difference this year is that the embarrassment or shame factor is gone," said Sherman. "People are calling who wouldn't normally call."

When Sherman asked the callers to describe their financial straits, they described expensive health issues; they mentioned losing jobs, or adult children losing jobs; they talked about retirement investments going south and interest rates down to a pittance.

The High Holy Days is the most important season of the Jewish religious year, beginning on Sept. 18 with Rosh Hashana and ending with Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, on Sept. 28. During that period, Jews pray for departed loved ones, ask forgiveness for misdeeds and seek to set a high moral tone for the year to come.

Unlike Christians, who contribute through the weekly collection plate, Jews support their temples through annual membership dues, which often include a place at High Holy Days services. But for the large number of unaffiliated Jews who return to temple during the High Holy Days, , there is a fee. Sometimes attendance is so large that congregations rent halls or theaters or set up video services in overflow rooms.

It's not just about not having money or losing a job, Sherman said.

"Some people just wanted to go to synagogue to pray for their health," he said. "People are under stress and they look at the temple as a way to hope when they find themselves down and out."

To receive assistance attending High Holy Days services, call Rabbi Alan Sherman, 561-242-6659, or e-mail him at alan.sherman@jewishpalmbeach.org.